The Transformation Of Kenya Moore From Childhood To 50 Years Old

The following article references physical abuse.

It's safe to say that if anyone always manages to keep things interesting on "The Real Housewives of Atlanta," it's Kenya Moore. The Detroit native has been part of the hit reality franchise since 2012, and since then has managed to become one of Bravo's biggest personalities. Yet Kenya wasn't always just a reality star. She actually began her career as a beauty queen when she was just a teen, eventually winning the Miss USA pageant in 1993.

From there on out, Kenya stayed in the spotlight, and the spotlight only grew. In addition to establishing herself as a bona fide reality television icon, she has gone on to become an actor, entrepreneur, and author. 

While Kenya has worked her way to the top professionally, she has definitely faced some obstacles in her personal life that began as early as when she was a baby. Yet, the reality star has come a long way to become the successful businesswoman and fulfilled mother she is today. She dished to Page Six in 2021, "[I'm] someone that's starting my path over ... and just doing things the way I want to do them, living life with reckless abandon." So let's take a look at the TV personality's transformation over the years that led her to this point.

Kenya Moore may be the star of "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" these days, but the reality star's life wasn't always so glamorous. The Detroit native shared with OZY, "I had such a difficult childhood," explaining that she "grew up in the '70s to teenage parents that did not want to have a child at the time." Kenya revealed that her mother didn't even "acknowledge the fact" that she had a kid, which is something Kenya always struggled with. She recalled, "My upbringing and my treatment was just not very humane. And I struggled through a lot even in my adult years to be even just remotely acknowledged by my mother."

Sadly, Kenya's mother was never receptive. She emphasized this on her Bravo blog, writing, "She pretends that I simply don't exist." Kenya did however, have a relationship with her father, which seems to have its own issues since she didn't invite him to her 2018 wedding. She dished on "RHOA" (via People), "You never know what he's going to say. ... And I didn't want there to be anything at my wedding to upset my future husband."

Yet, Kenya could always depend on her paternal grandmother, once writing (via Radar), "I clearly understand that I owe my life to her." Following her grandmother's death in 2017, Kenya paid tribute to her on her Instagram. "Today I lost the only woman in the world who has ever loved me unconditionally," she wrote. "She truly was my best friend."

You could say that Kenya Moore was a bit of a rebel as a teenager. She recalled to OZY, "When I hit my teenage years, I acted out...Sneaking out of the house, stealing the family car to go places I wasn't supposed to be going. You name it, I did it." Yet the mother of one did clarify, "I never went off the deep end and like really crossed the line to do stuff that was illegal or drugs."

Kenya was the victim of domestic violence at the young age of 16. Reflecting on the abuse on an episode of "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" (via People), she shared, "I dated someone who was 11 years my senior. It turned out to be a very physically abusive relationship to the point where I was stabbed, nearly killing me." Because of that, as an adult, Kenya decided to film a domestic violence PSA, saying "you don't have to look very far to find someone who has been adversely affected by it."

Fortunately, Kenya's teen years did have an upside. According to Jet magazine, the "Saints and Sinners" actor started doing beauty pageants at just age 14 to "gain exposure to the entertainment industry." She told OZY that she got into modeling and "started to get some large national campaigns." For Kenya, she admitted, "I probably would have just modeled... see where that would have led me," but fate had other plans.

If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.

At age 22, Kenya Moore's life changed forever when she was crowned Miss USA in 1993. "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" star not only wowed the judges with her beauty, but also with her personality. She stated during the pageant, "I think the judges can look into my eyes and see my heart and know that I'm a sincere person, that I'm here not because of me but because I want to help as many people as I can."

Kenya was the second Black woman in history to take home the title, and as she shared on a 2017 episode of "The Steve Harvey Show," it's her greatest accomplishment. "I wanted to change the face of beauty and what that meant at the time," she said. Kenya reiterated that in a 2019 Instagram post, honoring those who came before her: "I'm so very proud to be a part of history and most importantly a part of global recognition that Black is indeed Beautiful."

Kenya went on to use her Miss USA fame to launch her acting career. According to her IMDb, she made her debut the following year in 1994 in the TV series, "The Fresh Prince of Bel Air." From there, Kenya was able to continue to land TV and even movie roles steadily throughout her career. She dished to OZY, "After my reign was over from Miss USA, I acted in Hollywood for over 25 years. I mean, I've been on shows with huge celebrities."

In 2007, a then 36-year-old Kenya Moore added author to her resume when she released her own self-help book "Game, Get Some!: What Women Really Want." "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" star explained to Jet magazine that she wrote the book after rejecting three marriage proposals saying that men don't realize they "make crucial mistakes in the very beginning that would turn any woman off." She added, "The book is my way to give them a road map to showing their true intentions in a relationship."

Around the same time, Kenya was still working as an actor but decided to also take her talents behind-the-scenes by launching her production company Moore Vision Media, per Celebrity Net Worth. The reality star's producer experience dates back to 2000, when she worked on the romance thriller "Trois." 

It seems Kenya really took to the role, telling EUR in 2008, "I'm so happy to be producing right now." She continued, "I want to continue to produce movies for myself and also movies for other actors... I just want to produce solid films." Kenya also made it clear her focus was "empowering Black writers, Black directors, Black filmmakers." Radar reported that Kenya dissolved her production company in 2015, but she's continued to work in front of the camera ever since.

Kenya Moore's career took another major turn when she was 41 years old. In 2012, she joined "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" during its fifth season. The "Girlfriends" actor dished to Sister2Sister at the time (via Reality Tea), "I feel like it's almost like my duty to take the job because it's the converse of what we're seeing now." Kenya went to serve as a full time Housewife for six seasons before taking a break during Season 11. She told Us Weekly she did so "to focus on my high-risk pregnancy in a healthy and drama-free environment."

It's safe to say that Kenya's time on the show has been filled with drama from the beginning, especially since she's been involved in various feuds with "Real Housewives" co-stars like Phaedra Parks, Porsha Williams, and of course NeNe Leakes. Yet Kenya notes she feels she's sometimes portrayed unfairly, telling ET, "They always look to make me look bad, or make me look like a villain, and my heart is always in the right place."

But Kenya seems to know it comes with doing reality TV. She explained to OZY, "You do make situations bigger than they are. You're not acting, because it's not a scripted show, but you certainly are put in situations that are not organic." As of 2021, Kenya was still bringing the drama to "RHOA" despite some of her co-stars exiting. She holds her show in high regard, gushing, "The Real Housewives franchise I believe made stars."

At age 44, Kenya Moore decided to expand her career by creating another business, this time outside of the entertainment industry. In 2015, she launched her own hair care line. She revealed to Hello Beautiful that it wasn't just about making money, but about helping women feel beautiful. She dished, "My whole line is focused on combating damage and growing your hair back. So you're proud of your own hair that's growing out of your head." Kenya went on to explain how passionate she was about her brand, saying, "I took money from my paycheck and I invested it in my own business." She added, "I paid chemists. I paid research people... to put together a small line that works to combat the damage that Black women, especially women of color, do to their hair."

Her hair care line wasn't Kenya's first business venture though. She released her "Booty Boot Camp" workout videos the year before. The TV personality credits "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" for making her business possible. The Bravolebrity told OZY, "It's an amazing platform if you have a successful business to launch, promote, manage, grow...I've launched a multimillion-dollar brand from this show."

It seemed clear to Kenya around that time that reality TV was only leading to more success so she decided to compete on the reality game shows "The Apprentice" in 2015 and "Worst Cooks in America" in 2016. Yet soon after her personal life would finally take forefront over her career.

It seemed that Kenya Moore finally found the man she had been looking for at age 46 when she married New York based restaurant owner Marc Daly. The two decided to forego a big reality TV wedding to secretly elope in St. Lucia instead in 2017. "We wanted something simple and not overly complicated," she told People. "[Marc] didn't want it to be left up to other people's interpretation of love."

The couple had met a year earlier through fellow Bravo star Chef Roble Ali. Kenya gushed to People that she was so smitten that she "probably would have married him in 30 days, the feeling was that strong." However, Kenya was hesitant to share their relationship on "The Real Housewives of Atlanta." "He didn't sign up for this world," she said. "Every time someone has been associated with me, they attack that person." Kenya made it clear though that Marc wasn't with her for the wrong reasons, saying, "He doesn't want my money, he doesn't want my fame, he doesn't want my success — he just wants my heart." 

Once a newlywed, Kenya shared more about her husband on her Instagram, writing in one post, "you are the best man I have ever known." Yet, there were some red flags early on, like that she never met his parents. She later said on "The Real Housewives of Atlanta," "If you don't know everything about that person's life, you're not being let in."

In 2018, at age 47, Kenya Moore and her then-husband Marc Daly welcomed their "miracle baby," daughter Brooklyn Doris. "I've waited 47 years for this moment," "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" star gushed to People, "I have suffered so much in my life when it comes to wanting a family around me. So this is the day I've been waiting for my entire life."

Kenya had to undergo an emergency c-section after suffering from the pregnancy complication preeclampsia. She wrote just days before on her Instagram, "I gained 17 lbs in ONE week due to severe swelling and water retention, high blood pressure, and excess protein in urine. This is NOT normal!" She then posted that her baby was on the way earlier than expected, writing, "Won't be long now. Pray for us." While Kenya later updated that Brooklyn was "perfect and strong," the new mom had some recovery ahead of her. She shared days after giving birth, "the reality is it will take weeks for me to be able to walk without the excruciating pain."

Having Brooklyn made Kenya feel like she was finally "at the pinnacle of happiness." She frequently gushes about her daughter on her Instagram, calling her in one post "an angel she always prayed for." In 2021, the businesswoman wrote that her toddler was "My best present" because of her "unconditional love," and in another caption dished that motherhood was "My most important job in life."

While Kenya Moore seemed to be living her best life as a new mother after the birth of her daughter, her marriage to husband Marc Daly took a turn for the worse in 2019. In a statement provided to People that September, she said, "Due to recent and ongoing circumstances, I can no longer continue in the marriage." Marc also released a statement about the separation: "Rumors, innuendo or false accusations only serve to hurt our family and will be addressed through counsel as the law permits."

On "The Real Housewives of Atlanta," Kenya opened up about her relationship problems."One of my issues with him is not being able to just have a conversation without yelling or anger or crossing lines," she shared. "I just feel like it's always been this block up with him of not letting me completely into his life."

Then there were cheating whispers. Kenya said on the show that she had found inappropriate text messages between him and another woman, but did tell People in October 2019 that she didn't think he was having an affair. "I've heard a lot of rumors about secret families...there's zero truth to that," she in People. "In terms of infidelity, I've had no proof of that. That's not our issue," saying instead she "ignored red flags." She explained, "The last few weeks have taught me you can't believe who someone says they are, you have to believe who someone shows you who they are."

Like most of the world in 2020, Kenya Moore spent most of her year in quarantine because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Kenya did so in Atlanta, away from her estranged husband Marc Daly. She revealed on "Watch What Happens Live," "We're not together being quarantined because when everything happened he was in New York and now he's just trying to keep his restaurant alive." Yet she dished it turned out to be a temporary fix for their marriage saying, "We're actually getting along better." She said that when she did see Marc, "he was like, 'I don't want to break up. I want to work on our marriage.'"

Kenya was also seeing changes in her body. In September 2020, the former Miss USA wrote on Instagram, "The Quarantine has added 25lbs to my 5'10" frame. I don't mind if you don't mind." That December, she shared on the social media platform she was attempting a "12-week body transformation" (via The Daily Dish).

"The Real Housewives of Atlanta" had also resumed filming around that time. According to Deadline, the show had to halt production in November 2020 after someone on the crew tested positive for COVID-19. They were able to resume shooting two weeks later, with stricter COVID protocols in place.

At age 50, Kenya Moore appears to have found herself in a good place, both professionally and personally. She's not only remained an important part of the popular series "The Real Housewives of Atlanta," but she landed other major reality gigs as well. In September 2021, Kenya competed on "Dancing With the Stars," and while she didn't make it to the finale, doing the show meant a lot to her. "What an amazing experience," she wrote on her Instagram, adding that she was thankful for "the opportunity to live my best life and to show the world that a little Black girl from Detroit can live her dreams and show the world my REAL heart."

That year, the "I Know Who Killed Me" actor also appeared on "Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip" with some fellow "Real Housewives" stars for Peacock. The show, which filmed in Turks and Caicos in the first half of 2021, was not only more exposure for Kenya, but happened to be a good time. She spilled on her Instagram, "Doing this show was so much fun!!!"

Kenya also made a big decision about her marriage in August 2021 when she officially filed for divorce from Marc Daly. She revealed to Page Six, "What's liberating is to be able to live through it and come out better for it. I'm excited for this new chapter and this new life." Kenya clearly overcame a lot of obstacles over her 50 years but it seems she's finally transformed into the woman she wants to be.